OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Gulfport City Council Meeting - July 19, 2022

City Council — Tuesday, July 19, 2022
BodyGulfport, Mississippi
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, July 19, 2022
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
5:40

So watching the news lately between gun violence, Supreme Court decisions, and the heat that's going on.

5:48

I have three quotes.

5:50

Nobody needs to justify why they need a right.

5:53

The burden of justification falls on the ones seeking to infringe upon the right.

5:57

But even if they did, you can't give away the rights of others because they're not useful to you.

6:02

More simply, the majority cannot vote away the natural rights of the minority.

6:07

Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say.

6:16

And that was from Edward Snowden.

6:18

Gun control.

6:20

Gun control.

6:21

We need bullet control.

6:23

I think if every bullet costs five thousand dollars, we wouldn't have any innocent bystanders.

6:28

Chris Rock.

6:30

And adults keep saying we owe it to the young people to give them hope.

6:34

But I don't want your hope.

6:36

I don't want you to be hopeful.

6:37

I want you to panic.

6:39

I want you to feel the fear I feel every day.

6:41

I want you to act.

6:43

I want you to act as if you would in a crisis.

6:45

I want you to act as if the house is on fire because it is.

6:49

And that's um Greta Thunberg.

6:52

All right, thank you.

6:54

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

6:58

To republic for which to dance one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

7:10

Vice Mayor Brown?

7:11

Here.

7:11

Councilmember Ray?

7:12

Here.

7:12

Council Member Ferdovich.

7:14

Mayor Henderson.

7:14

Here.

7:15

City Manager O'Reilly.

7:16

City Attorney Salzman.

7:19

All right, first item on the agenda tonight is open public comment.

7:21

So this is for anything that's not on the agenda tonight.

7:24

I have three minutes.

7:25

Please use the microphone and uh give your name and address if you're comfortable with it, and start with you.

7:29

I saw your hand first.

7:35

Hi, my name is Natanya Diamond.

7:37

Um I'm here because I'm re representing a bunch of people that were going to show up tonight and somehow I'm the only one.

7:48

Okay.

7:48

But I'm from the dog par uh, you know, I'm I I visit the dog park regularly.

7:54

I have a dog.

7:55

Many of you may have seen me on my tricycle with my dog.

7:58

And um our Facebook page, we have a hundred people on the big dog side.

8:04

There's probably a lot more on the small dog side.

8:07

This is one of the most heavily l used parks in the uh in the um city.

8:14

And um I there been a lot of conversation.

8:18

There's always conversation about what can we do.

8:21

Uh one of the things that uh we've had some conversation with Christine Brown about what was coming up that there was going to be some um some shades put in but uh but there are other things that we would like like um I get there sometimes and there's all the seats are full, and I uh I ride my tricycle because I can't stand very long, you know.

8:47

And so for those people uh there's not always enough seating, you know, and the seating that is there I worry about because there's big gaps, and I've seen puppies slip their feet in there and fall, and you know, there could be eventually a broken leg.

9:01

You know, there's input that we could give so that there's less complaint, we would like to know a way to give that input on a regular basis, or you know, how we could do that.

9:12

Um and just uh so that the projects that are coming in, you know, are ones we want and ones that we can uh and uh that you know if there's something we could tweak about it, maybe you know, uh you know, not all of us are that politically uh uh uh involved, but you know, it does seem like we can improve our dog park.

9:36

Um I'm there most days with my dog, and there is a crowd that is generally there on a regular basis.

9:43

So um those were the things that we were looking uh for was just uh to get some input, uh see if we could have some input on what things we could get done.

9:53

I mean, I've seen other ideas like on the face uh on because you're constantly having to replace grass, and I've talked about grass before.

10:02

But uh is you know, maybe just a sand pit where the dogs can dig and that let them just dig there or things like that.

10:10

We have ideas, but you know, just uh how do we get that to you and you know how do we have a conversation?

10:18

Okay.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Comment███████████████████████23%
Arts And Culture██████████████████18%
Public Safety███████████████15%
Short Term Rentals██████████████14%
Affordable Housing████████████12%
Procedural██████████10%
Parks and Recreation████████8%
Summary of Proceedings

Gulfport City Council Meeting - July 19, 2022

The Gulfport City Council met on Tuesday, July 19, 2022, at 6:00 PM at Gulfport City Hall. The meeting included public comments, a city manager report, and unanimous approval of four resolutions. Council members also discussed housing, short-term rentals, and community events.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Natanya Diamond (dog park user) requested more input opportunities for dog park improvements, citing insufficient seating, safety gaps in benches, and ideas like a sand pit for digging. She noted the big dog park has about 100 members on Facebook.
  • Karen Love (23rd Avenue South) praised fire/rescue response (arrived in ~4 minutes) but criticized the non-emergency dispatch number for asking for an address at the beach, which she found unsatisfying. She also raised concerns about fish cleaning residue on concrete benches and called for enforceable smoking ordinances, noting she picks up 1,000 cigarette butts per cleanup.
  • Ray Rodriguez (phone-in) gave a legal 90-day notice of intent to sue the city, Boca Sega Yacht Club, and the Gulfport Police Department.

City Manager Report

  • City Manager O'Reilly presented the proposed budget for FY 2022/2023, noting a 6.6% increase in the general fund, with 70% of costs being personnel. All general employees would receive 6% raises. Operational expenses saw minimal growth. The budget was prepared amid a 12% inflation environment (1.3% nationwide on top of 11.3% local).
  • Regarding the dog park, the city manager confirmed that a new shelter (to match the small dog park's longer shelter) and a corral for chairs are in the works. A sand pit in the digging area is being considered as an alternative to turf.

Resolutions (All Passed Unanimously)

  • Resolution 2022-47: Set the proposed millage rate at 4.039 mills for the 11th consecutive year, and established the dates for the FY 2022/2023 millage rate and budget public hearings.
  • Resolution 2022-48: Authorized the city manager to enter into a service and user agreement with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office for law enforcement support services (e.g., communications) for FY 2022/2023. Police Chief Vincent was present to answer questions.
  • Resolution 2022-49: Authorized an agreement with Earth Networks, Inc. to place a weather camera on the Gulfport Casino. The camera will be used by CBS affiliate Channel 10 at no cost to the city.
  • Resolution 2022-50: Authorized the city manager to enter into an agreement with artist Ray Domingo (The Domingo Studio) for installation of a public art piece at the Gulfport Casino. During discussion, it was revealed that the city spent approximately $20,000 on a cement base and an additional $32,000 total for the foundation (including pilings and engineering), funded from the city's WRD operating budget. The city's contribution to the art itself is $16,000. Council had not previously voted on the foundation costs, but the city manager stated it was within his discretion. The resolution passed unanimously after a brief delay to answer public questions.

Council Comments & Informational Reports

  • Councilmember Thanos: Announced she started the police academy. Reported from the Suncoast League of Cities retreat that net metering, homelessness, housing affordability, and insurance costs were identified as key issues. She requested a town hall meeting on housing and short-term rentals, which the council agreed to schedule.
  • Vice Mayor Brown: Asked that the city update its website to reflect the new suicide hotline number (988). Proposed awarding the Spirit of Gulfport award to Harold Russell, owner of Backfin Blue, for his 25 years of community contributions. Council agreed to entertain the proposal.
  • Councilmember Ray: Reported on her town hall meeting (October 12 date set). Topics included the dog park paint, short-term rentals (with some residents for and against), a request for a stop sign at Fremont and 13th (under traffic study), and a request for a recycling demonstration at the next meeting. She noted that the city cannot legally limit rental prices.
  • Councilmember Ferdovich: Announced an international conference on education, arts, and culture planned for October 8 at the casino, featuring artist Ray Domingo and other speakers, including former Florida CFO Alex Sink.
  • Mayor Henderson: Discussed cease-and-desist letters regarding Ray Rodriguez's threats to sue and excessive emails from another individual. He also reported that Winway Homes had been dishonest in prior meetings with citizens, and he cautioned residents about the company.

Key Outcomes

  • All four resolutions (2022-47, 2022-48, 2022-49, 2022-50) passed unanimously.
  • A town hall on housing and short-term rentals will be scheduled, led by Councilmember Thanos.
  • The Spirit of Gulfport award for Harold Russell will be considered at a future meeting.
  • A recycling demonstration is planned for the October 12 meeting.
  • The city manager will look into whitelisting Suncoast League of Cities emails to resolve delivery issues.
  • Council directed staff to pursue a cease-and-desist letter regarding the individual who filed a notice of intent to sue.

Meeting Transcript

So watching the news lately between gun violence, Supreme Court decisions, and the heat that's going on. I have three quotes. Nobody needs to justify why they need a right. The burden of justification falls on the ones seeking to infringe upon the right. But even if they did, you can't give away the rights of others because they're not useful to you. More simply, the majority cannot vote away the natural rights of the minority. Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say. And that was from Edward Snowden. Gun control. Gun control. We need bullet control. I think if every bullet costs five thousand dollars, we wouldn't have any innocent bystanders. Chris Rock. And adults keep saying we owe it to the young people to give them hope. But I don't want your hope. I don't want you to be hopeful. I want you to panic. I want you to feel the fear I feel every day. I want you to act. I want you to act as if you would in a crisis. I want you to act as if the house is on fire because it is. And that's um Greta Thunberg. All right, thank you. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. To republic for which to dance one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Vice Mayor Brown? Here. Councilmember Ray? Here. Council Member Ferdovich. Mayor Henderson. Here. City Manager O'Reilly. City Attorney Salzman. All right, first item on the agenda tonight is open public comment. So this is for anything that's not on the agenda tonight. I have three minutes. Please use the microphone and uh give your name and address if you're comfortable with it, and start with you. I saw your hand first. Hi, my name is Natanya Diamond. Um I'm here because I'm re representing a bunch of people that were going to show up tonight and somehow I'm the only one. Okay. But I'm from the dog par uh, you know, I'm I I visit the dog park regularly. I have a dog. Many of you may have seen me on my tricycle with my dog. And um our Facebook page, we have a hundred people on the big dog side. There's probably a lot more on the small dog side. This is one of the most heavily l used parks in the uh in the um city. And um I there been a lot of conversation. There's always conversation about what can we do.

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