At the first of seven heavily advertised “community meetings”, Manatee County chairwoman Vanessa Baugh drew a total of three (3) people to a meeting she hosted on the evening of October 4th. It’s not clear if voter apathy,…
In arguing for the recently unveiled “Toronto Blue Jays project“, Dunedin city staff and city commissioners have pointed to the 2016 economic impact analysis (EIA) as support for spending $65 million of public funds on this project. However,…
At a meeting of the Pinellas County Legislative Delegation on Tuesday, St. Pete mayor Rick Kriseman claimed that he and “his top aides” didn’t know about a crucial 2014 sewage consultant’s report until last week. Yet somehow…
Gulfport city council member Dan Liedtke today posted a one minute video online about the St. Pete sewage debacle. Liedtke also offered some damning comments to the Guardian that are sure to further damage the credibility of beleaugered…
On September 15th, the PSTA board voted 10-3 (video of the vote) to ask the Pinellas County commission to hike the millage rate from 0.7305 to 0.7500, a 2.7% increase. PSTA’s spending will increase by an eye-popping…
The Downtown Dunedin Merchants Association (DDMA) hosted a city commission candidate forum at the Bon Appétit restaurant on Wednesday evening. All six candidates attended. The candidates present were: mayor Julie Bujalski and her opponent commissioner Bruce Livingston vying…
On their website, the Suncoast Sierra Club (SSC) say they “participate in local environmental activities.” Yet the SSC, which is a local chapter of the national Sierra Club, has had nothing to say about the recent and multiple…
The City of Clearwater announced Friday that it released an estimated 4-5 million gallons of raw sewage into the impoverished North Greenwood section of the city during Hurricane Hermine. The hurricane did not hit Clearwater, but…
As first reported by the Tampa Bay Times, Dunedin mayor Julie Bujalski and her husband Tom were chronically delinquent in paying for their boat slip at the Dunedin city marina. They received lenient treatment by the…
In its own “scorecard”, the City of St. Petersburg claims its residential recycling program generated “savings” of $518,921 during the last year (August through July). However, the program actually costs residents $2.5 million dollars per year.…
Tropical Depression 9 (TD9) hit the Tampa Bay area on Wednesday. According to BayNews 9, the rains were actually just the “indirect effects” of TD9, a storm which will only arrive tomorrow. When it does arrive,…
“We need leadership to develop a grassroots support for more taxes to generate revenue to pay for the construction of public mass transit”, said one attendee during a Cafe con Tampa event on Friday (August 26th)…
— by James Lampe, former national environmental reporter — Summary: if passed, this Amendment would exempt solar devices installed on homes or businesses from ad valorem taxes until the end of 2037. As you consider how to vote, please…
The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority August July board meeting turned into a political “Spin Bin” on Wednesday as political spin was applied to a multitude of embarrassing situations. First, evidence of Florida Ethics Law violations by board member Ben Diamond…
— from our Polk County reporter — In Polk County there is a contested race between incumbent judge Susan Barber (formerly Susan Flood) and a local attorney, Carson Bassett. At present, agitated voters in America…
On August 19, the Rays held a “Baseball Forever Night”, a promotion where tickets prices were cut in half. Rays caps were handed out to those who bought the lower-level seats, which were reasonably priced…
PSTA staff is recommending a hike in the property tax millage rate to 0.75 mills, the maximum allowed by Florida law. The current rate is 0.7305 mills. In other words, if the hike is approved, the millage…
Despite claims by city “leaders” that voters have been duped into signing petitions, and despite offers to remove those signatures upon request, no requests to remove signatures from a citizen petition drive have been received by the…
