OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

St. Petersburg City Council Meeting – August 18, 2023

City Council — Friday, August 18, 2023
BodySt Petersburg, Florida
SessionCity Council
DateFriday, August 18, 2023
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:02

Welcome to the City of St.

0:03

Petersburg City Council meeting.

0:06

Your elected officials are Mayor Ken Welch.

0:10

District One, Copley Gurtis.

0:13

District 2 and Council Chair, Brandy Gabbard.

0:18

District 3, Edmonton Mary.

0:22

District 4, Leseth Hanowitz.

0:25

District 5 and Council Vice Chair, Deborah Fig Sanders.

0:30

District 6, Gina Driscoll.

0:33

District 7, John Mohammed.

0:37

And District 8, Richie Floyd.

0:47

Excited.

0:48

Good afternoon, everyone.

0:50

We call the order.

0:50

The August 17th, 2023, City Council meeting.

0:56

Floyd.

0:57

Here.

0:57

Curtis.

0:58

Gabbard.

1:00

Antenary.

1:01

Here.

1:01

Hannawitz.

1:02

X Sanders.

1:03

Here.

1:04

Fiskal here.

1:05

Mohammed.

1:05

Here.

1:06

Thank you.

1:07

We will now have an invitation given by the Reverend Ethan Cole, Pastor of Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, which we will be followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

1:17

Would you please stand?

1:27

Almighty God, send down upon these city councilors who hold office in St.

1:33

Petersburg the spirit of wisdom, compassion, and justice.

1:37

That with steadfast purpose, they may faithfully serve in their offices to promote the well-being of all people.

1:45

Give them a generous portion of creativity and imagination to address the needs and concerns of this city and a practical plan to carry that out.

1:56

And for all those who live and work in this city, be present in our homes to guard and guide us in the right way.

2:04

Help us to take pride in our labor and industry.

2:08

Give to all a just return for their labor.

2:11

And help us never to forget that our common life depends upon each other's toil.

2:16

In your holy name we pray.

2:18

Amen.

2:28

One nation.

2:37

Thank you, Reverend Cole for that moving invocation.

2:40

Council members, we have an agenda before us today with the request to delete F3, the issue regarding the sunrunner service.

2:47

With that change, I'll entertain a motion for approval.

2:50

Move approval.

2:51

Second.

2:52

Now that we have a motion and second of approval as the agenda as amended, seeing that there are no requests to speak or discussion with the clerk.

2:59

Would you please open the machine for voting?

3:09

Seeing that all present council members have voted, would you please tally the votes and announce the votes?

3:15

Madam Chair, the motion to approve the agenda passes unanimously with council member gabbard being absent.

3:20

Thank you.

3:21

Council members, we have a cent agenda before us today.

3:25

Do we have any cards or for public comments?

3:27

I do not have any hearts.

3:28

Okay, and with that, I entertain a motion for approval.

3:31

Move approval.

3:32

Now that we have a motion and a second for approval for the consent agenda, seeing that there are no requests to speak.

3:37

Will the clerk please open the machine for voting?

3:40

Council members, please face your vote.

3:44

Seeing that all present council members have voted, would you please tally and announce the votes?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety████████████████████████24%
Engineering And Infrastructure██████████████████████22%
Zoning and Land Use███████████████15%
Procedural██████████████14%
Affordable Housing██████6%
Homelessness████4%
Public Transportation███3%
Housing and Homelessness███3%
Economic Development███3%
Summary of Proceedings

St. Petersburg City Council Meeting – August 18, 2023

The St. Petersburg City Council met on August 18, 2023, to discuss and vote on multiple items including a public safety training facility, police department quarterly report, utility rate ordinances, a fire station land purchase, affordable housing tax credit support, and a comprehensive plan update. All votes were unanimous with Councilmember Gabbard absent.

Consent Calendar

  • Agenda Approval (amended): Motion to delete item F3 (Sunrunner service) from the agenda; approved unanimously.
  • Consent Agenda: Approved unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Sunrunner Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Plan: Three residents spoke via Zoom in support of expanding the TOD plan to include residential parcels within at least a quarter mile of Sunrunner stations.
    • Max McCann (2648 3rd Ave S) argued that excluding residential parcels would limit housing affordability and ridership; urged council to include residential zones.
    • Madison Rice (3245 Jackson St N) stated the current plan excludes the "live" component of TOD and would only produce high-rent high-rises, asking for missing-middle housing near transit.
    • Warren Willingham (speaking as Magnolia Heights, address same as Rice) opposed excluding residential areas, warning the Sunrunner could be seen as a failure if not paired with dense, walkable development; characterized fears of neighborhood change as a cover for socioeconomic exclusivity.

Discussion Items

  • F5 – Architectural Design Services for Public Safety Training Facility: Councilmember Driscoll presented this as good news. City Architect Raul Cantina explained that Sweet Sparkman Architects was selected to develop a master plan for a new joint fire and police canine training facility on the west side of Lake Maggiore. The current facility is over 45 years old. The first phase includes programming and siting; full design and construction is estimated to take 2–2.5 years. Councilmembers asked about timeline, environmental concerns (previous dumping site, adjacent brush/compost site), and temporary training locations during construction. Fire Chief Gancy noted collaboration with police and possible use of St. Pete College grounds. Motion approved unanimously.
  • F1 – St. Petersburg Police Department Quarterly Report: Chief Anthony Holloway presented crime statistics for April–June 2023. Overall crime increased 4% compared to the same quarter last year, but the five-year trend is down 6.5%. Violent crime up 2% (five-year trend down 1%). Homicides: 4 in quarter (10 year-to-date vs. 9 last year). Property crimes up 4% but five-year trend down 7%. Auto thefts up 37%. Traffic fatalities decreased from 28 to 14 year-to-date. The PATH (homeless outreach) unit saw an 83% increase in contacts; Chief attributed it to more homeless individuals coming to St. Petersburg for services. Use of force complaints down; three citizen discourtesy complaints. Councilmember Mohammed asked about juvenile involvement in auto thefts (90% juveniles) and clarification of the GRIT program. Councilmember Fig Figueroa (?) requested data on homeless origins; Councilmember Fig Sanders offered to provide point-in-time survey data. Report received, no vote needed.
  • E1A – Sanitation Rates Ordinance (Ordinance 550-H): First reading, public hearing set for September 7. Approved unanimously.
  • E1B – Stormwater Utility Fee Ordinance (Ordinance 551-H): First reading, amending tier rate structure for single-family parcels. Approved unanimously.
  • E1C – Utility Rates and Charges Ordinance (Ordinance 552-H): First reading, comprehensive amendments to water, wastewater, reclamation charges. Approved unanimously.
  • E2 – Firefighters Supplemental Retirement Compensation (Ordinance 553-H): First reading, adding certain overtime to earnable compensation. Approved unanimously.
  • F2 – Land Purchase for Fire Station #2 (2375 66th St N from Pinellas County School Board): Real Estate Director Aaron Fish presented the $1.6M purchase of 1.18 acres at Tyrone Middle School. The existing temporary station lease expires March 2024. The 2021 appraisal valued the property at $1,425,000 based on commercial highest-and-best use; updated residential-only appraisals gave $870k–$1M. Councilmember Driscoll and others defended the price as appropriate given the commercial corridor and inflation. The site will be used for a new station with two apparatus bays (prototype from Fire Stations 7 & 8). A special exception for the fire station use is required. Motion approved unanimously.
  • F4 – Local Government Verification for Affordable Housing Tax Credits: Senior Housing Coordinator Stephanie Lang requested approval to split $610,000 in local contribution between two competing 9% tax credit developments: Palm Lake Urban Sanctuary (86 units at 5401 22nd Ave N) and Residences at Mirror Tower (80 units, 13 stories at 747 4th Ave N). Only one can win the state competition; applications due September 13. Councilmember Driscoll asked about fallback options. Motion approved unanimously.
  • H1 – Committee Report (PSI to EWD Referral): Councilmember Hanowitz moved to move a quarterly report on Growth Smarter sites from the Public Services & Infrastructure committee to the Economic & Workforce Development committee. Motion approved unanimously.
  • J1 & J2 – Preliminary Assets: Brief item requiring a vote; approved unanimously.
  • J3 – Comprehensive Plan Text Amendments (Ordinance 541-H): First reading/public hearing for updates related to the Live Local Act (SB 102) and Albert Whitted Airport master plan maps. Planner Britton Wilson presented changes to Objective LU3 to allow mixed-use affordable housing (at least 40% affordable) on parcels zoned commercial or industrial, and updates to airport height limitation and facility maps. Motion approved unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • All votes on the above items passed unanimously with Councilmember Gabbard absent. Specific tallies: Agenda (8-0), Consent Agenda (8-0), F5 (8-0), E1A (7-0 – Floyd and Gabbard absent), E1B (7-0), E1C (8-0), E2 (8-0), F2 (8-0), F4 (8-0), H1 (8-0), J1/J2 (8-0), J3 (8-0).
  • Next Steps: The public safety training facility design will proceed; a second phase agreement and construction manager selection expected in early 2024. The police quarterly report will be filed. Utility rate ordinances will have public hearings on September 7, 2023. The fire station land purchase will undergo due diligence and special exception process. Affordable housing tax credit applications due September 13. Comprehensive plan amendments will be transmitted to state agencies for review.

Meeting Transcript

Welcome to the City of St. Petersburg City Council meeting. Your elected officials are Mayor Ken Welch. District One, Copley Gurtis. District 2 and Council Chair, Brandy Gabbard. District 3, Edmonton Mary. District 4, Leseth Hanowitz. District 5 and Council Vice Chair, Deborah Fig Sanders. District 6, Gina Driscoll. District 7, John Mohammed. And District 8, Richie Floyd. Excited. Good afternoon, everyone. We call the order. The August 17th, 2023, City Council meeting. Floyd. Here. Curtis. Gabbard. Antenary. Here. Hannawitz. X Sanders. Here. Fiskal here. Mohammed. Here. Thank you. We will now have an invitation given by the Reverend Ethan Cole, Pastor of Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, which we will be followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Would you please stand? Almighty God, send down upon these city councilors who hold office in St. Petersburg the spirit of wisdom, compassion, and justice. That with steadfast purpose, they may faithfully serve in their offices to promote the well-being of all people. Give them a generous portion of creativity and imagination to address the needs and concerns of this city and a practical plan to carry that out. And for all those who live and work in this city, be present in our homes to guard and guide us in the right way. Help us to take pride in our labor and industry. Give to all a just return for their labor. And help us never to forget that our common life depends upon each other's toil. In your holy name we pray. Amen. One nation. Thank you, Reverend Cole for that moving invocation. Council members, we have an agenda before us today with the request to delete F3, the issue regarding the sunrunner service. With that change, I'll entertain a motion for approval. Move approval. Second. Now that we have a motion and second of approval as the agenda as amended, seeing that there are no requests to speak or discussion with the clerk. Would you please open the machine for voting? Seeing that all present council members have voted, would you please tally the votes and announce the votes? Madam Chair, the motion to approve the agenda passes unanimously with council member gabbard being absent.

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