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SPB City Hall is open for business, almost
By AMY WIMMER, Times Staff Writer ST. PETE BEACH -- Behind the hurricane-resistant doors, past the reception desk with the granite countertop, into the city clerk's off- Huh? The office of the city clerk, responsible for ensuring open city government, is locked? "It locks behind you. Always," City Clerk Teri McMaster said. "You can't unlock it." City employees are settling into their new digs at 155 Corey Ave. They are wearing blue jeans to work, unpacking boxes, and dusting off old shelves hauled across the street to the new building. They are also learning the quirks of the long-awaited City Hall. Like that door, which now has a piece of tape over the lock to keep it from locking every time someone walks through it. The city plans to fix that. For Pam Prell, the deputy city clerk who has worked in St. Pete Beach for 17 years and witnessed as many years' worth of discussions about building a new City Hall, the wait was worthwhile. "It is absolutely wonderful. It's relaxing. It kind of gets you all pumped up. It's refreshing," she said. As of Monday, St. Pete Beach no longer resides at 7701 Boca Ciega Drive. The City Commission and other boards will continue meeting at the old building until at least the end of the month while the new City Hall's audio/visual system is installed. When complete, the system will allow the city to broadcast more professional-looking graphics on its public access channel. The city also can broadcast maps and other materials related to zoning changes on television while boards discuss the change. The city has not yet decided when to demolish the old City Hall, though it would like to tear down the old Misener building, located on the south side of the old City Hall property along 75th Avenue, as soon as possible. City commissioners are still trying to decide whether to keep the city gymnasium, also located on the property. They hope to use the old City Hall site as a new waterfront park. In the meantime, employees are using the move as a chance to clean out files. Prell said several clerical workers had submitted state "disposition forms," which request permission to throw out documents that state statutes do not require the city to keep. Prell has found plenty of old memorabilia among the city files, including a photo of former Fire Chief Bucky Hartman wearing horn-rimmed glasses in the 1960s or '70s. But the prize was her discovery of an old plaque honoring veterans that was once mounted outside City Hall. When city officials designed the Honor Walk at Upham Beach in 1999, they looked everywhere for that plaque. They wanted to replicate the veterans' names at Honor Walk, but never found it. Prell solved the mystery. The plaque was in the bottom of a filing cabinet drawer. "We found it," she said. "Now, what are we going to do with it?"
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
