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The American Assembly, drawn from across the social spectrum, will try to create a shared vision for Pinellas.
By ANNE LINDBERG and MAUREEN BYRNE AHERN
© St. Petersburg Times, published April 21, 2002
With just four weeks to go before a group meets to plot out future relations among the cities and county, Lealman fire commissioners have yet to decide who will represent them at the confab.
They're scheduled to choose Monday who will represent them on the American Assembly.
It's an important decision, said community activist Ray Neri, who will also serve on the assembly, because big decisions may come out of the meeting.
"This is very important. This could be a big fiasco. It could be nothing. But it could be something," Neri said. "We have a 2 1/2 day window to discuss these issues and make an impact with people who are not familiar with issues affecting Lealman."
Fire commissioners will not be the only folks making decisions about representation on the assembly.
Others -- from the usual roster of elected officials and bureaucrats to people as diverse as artists and ministers -- who get invitations to join the 150-member assembly will decide for themselves if they are interested and able to serve.
Al Redman, a retired Army general who lives in an unincorporated area near Seminole, received an invitation to participate in the assembly. He's an antiannexation activist who believes unincorporated residents aren't being heard. He hopes the American Assembly will change that.
"The way we are going now is accomplishing nothing," Redman said. "I think the only way we're going to get to the bottom of this is with representation."
Pinellas County Commissioner Ken Welch agreed it will give new people a chance to be heard.
"As far as I know, it's the first time you've got government, business, citizens coming together from all across the county trying to decide what our collective vision should be," Welch said. "I think you break down a lot of walls once you get face to face with people."
So, just what is this American Assembly and why are so many people pinning big hopes on its outcome?
The easy answer is that it's a three-day meeting of movers and shakers from across the county who want to talk about the future of Pinellas and all its cities with special emphasis on the relationships and duties of those various governments.
But that glosses over the potential impact of the discussions, which could lead to far-reaching changes in laws and ways to deliver government services that could reach into every home in Pinellas County.
Consider: You're a resident of unincorporated East Lake and you complain to the county that a fallen tree is blocking the road. When you look outside, you see a crew from say, the city of Tarpon Springs or Oldsmar removing the debris because the county had contracted with that city for services.
It could also work the other way, with the city contracting with the county for services.
That's only one small scenario that could play out if some of the ideas being floated take hold during the assembly.
That could also happen more globally. Take fire service, for example.
Welch, the county commissioner, wants the assembly to talk about consolidating fire service, at least in part. The idea is for the county to take over fire protection much as it handles emergency medical services. That could mean dissolution of smaller departments but save money for people in areas such as Lealman and the beach communities, where fire service costs a lot. Bigger cities, such as Pinellas Park, Largo or St. Petersburg, could retain their fire departments and continue operating as they do now.
"That's a topic that certainly needs to be discussed and probably will be," Welch said.
For Welch, the discussion over services is paramount. But participants will find plenty of other things to talk about with seven weighty issues on the agenda.
The American Assembly is not new. The first was established in 1950 by Dwight D. Eisenhower to provide a setting and technique for bringing diverse people together to discuss important questions.
Leading Pinellas County's, which runs from May 16-18 and is open to the public, will be Lance deHaven-Smith, a professor of public administration at Florida State University, and Jim Murley, director of a research center at Florida Atlantic University.
Here's how the American Assembly process works:
A steering committee of about 25 folks from various backgrounds and organizations met once or twice a month from earlier this year until this month.
The committee worked through the community's issues and selected the topics to be considered at the assembly. They narrowed that down to seven that concerned the county and its 24 municipalities. Those included annexation, government services and the relationships between governments.
The committee decided where the assembly will take place -- Harborview Center in Clearwater -- and who should participate. The goal was to have a mix of community leaders from various backgrounds, including elected and appointed officials, environmentalists and religious, community and business leaders, said Sarah Shannon, director of the Florida Institute of Government at Florida Atlantic University.
The county has agreed to pay half of the assembly's $51,000 cost, with St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo and Seminole each paying $5,000. Other participating governments will pick up the remainder of the fee.
The Florida Institute of Government is part of a statewide consortium of universities that provides training and technical assistance to state and local governments. It will coordinate the three-day assembly in Pinellas.
At the assembly, participants will be divided into groups that meet for six to eight discussion periods during two days. A facilitator and a recorder are assigned to each group to encourage open participation and to summarize the group deliberations.
It's up to deHaven-Smith to make sense of it all. On the third day of the assembly, a draft report is presented to the participants.
It's that report that could really go places and spark debate and major changes across the county.
"There are a ton of issues out there we need to talk about and I think this is a good first step," Welch said.
The following is a list of topics to be discussed and a sampling of questions.
1. Goals and principles for local government
With Pinellas County almost fully developed, local governments are now tackling redevelopment. What is the best way local governments can work together to improve the county's economic position?
2. Urban service delivery and financing
Should there be greater coordination or consolidation in providing services? For example, should there be a countywide fire service or should the county contract with cities to provide recreation services to its residents?
3. Economic development
What changes are needed in existing state, regional and local policies to maintain and enhance the economy? Should there be more uniformity in building codes and land development regulations? What types of business and industry should local governments seek to attract to the county?
4. Annexation
Does the current local policy, which deals only with voluntary annexations, work? What role should the County Commission have? Should it represent the interests and respond to the concerns of unincorporated residents who do not want to be annexed?
5. Governing intergovernmental relations
Should a set of goals or principles be adopted to deal with urban issues? Should unincorporated residents be encouraged to form new cities or be annexed? Should county government and all or some of the municipalities consolidate into a single government? Should the larger cities continue to grow through annexation and provide services to other cities and unincorporated areas?
6. Targets of opportunity
Can local governments put aside their differences and work in unity to attract a national event or major employer? Should they create a unified profile that each municipality could use to market the county?
7. Next steps
Is the system of local government suitable for guiding the community into the future? What steps should be taken, if any, to improve the overall system?
Here are the members of the American Assembly steering committee. This group named members of the overall American Assembly:
Askia Muhammed Aquil, executive director, St. Petersburg Neighborhood Housing Services;
Michael Bonfield, city manager, St. Pete Beach;
Tom Brobeil, city manager, Indian Rocks Beach;
Chuck Coward, city manager, Treasure Island;
Dick Eckenrod, executive director, Tampa Bay Estuary Program;
Frank Edmunds, city manager, Seminole;
Tish Elston, vice mayor, St. Petersburg;
Rick Feinberg, International Association of Firefighters;
Rod Fischer, executive director, Pinellas County Construction and Licensing Board;
Bruce Haddock, city manager, Oldsmar;
David Healey, executive director, Pinellas Planning Council;
Bill Horne, city manager, Clearwater;
John Lawrence or Maureen Freaney, Dunedin;
Robert E. Lee, city manager, Gulfport;
Ray Neri, president, Lealman Community Association;
Ellen Posivach, city manager, Tarpon Springs;
Manny Pumariega, executive director, Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council;
Jack Rimkus, resident, Treasure Island;
Darryl Rouson, president, NAACP-St. Petersburg branch;
Steve Spratt, Pinellas County administrator;
John Stewart, deputy superintendent, Pinellas County School Board;
Unnamed representative from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office;
Roger Sweeney, director, Pinellas County Suncoast Transit Authority;
Fred Winters, president, NCF&O/SEIU Local No. 1220.
Here is a list of people invited to be on the American Assembly in Pinellas County.
Law enforcement/fire/EMS
Chief James Angle, Palm Harbor Fire Department
Chief Deputy James Coats, Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
David Demers, chief judge, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court
Robert Dillinger, Pinellas County public defender
David Dyker, president, Pinellas County Council of Firefighters
Rick Feinberg, president, St. Petersburg Association of Firefighters
Sid Klein, police chief, city of Clearwater
Tim Ingold, president, Fraternal Order of Police
Bernie McCabe, Pinellas-Pasco state attorney
(1 elected official from each of the 24 municipalities and 2 from St. Petersburg)
Belleair -- Commissioner Ernst Upmeyer
Belleair Beach -- Council member Frank Lombardi
Belleair Bluffs -- unavailable
Belleair Shore -- Mayor John Robertson
Clearwater -- Commissioner Hoyt Hamilton
Dunedin -- Commissioner Deborah Kynes
Gulfport -- Council member Harry W. Brodhead
Indian Rocks Beach -- unavailable
Indian Shores -- Council member Joan Herndon
Kenneth City -- Mayor Bill Smith
Largo -- Mayor Bob Jackson; alternate: Vice Mayor Marty Shelby
Madeira Beach -- Commissioner Jan Sturgis
North Redington Beach -- Mayor Harold Radcliffe
Oldsmar -- Mayor Jerry Beverland
Pinellas Park -- Council member Sandra Bradbury
Redington Beach -- unavailable
Redington Shores -- Commissioner Lawrence Foerster
Safety Harbor -- Vice Mayor Keith Zayac
Seminole -- Mayor Dottie Reeder
South Pasadena -- Mayor Fred Held
St. Pete Beach -- Mayor Ward Friszolowski
St. Petersburg -- Mayor Rick Baker and Council member Bill Foster; alternate: Jay Lasita
Tarpon Springs -- Mayor Frank DiDonato
Treasure Island -- Commissioner Barbara Blush
Calvin D. Harris
Susan Latvala
John Morroni
Robert Stewart
Barbara Sheen Todd
Kenneth T. Welch
Karen Seel
Deborah Clark, supervisor of elections
Karleen DeBlaker, clerk of courts
Diane Nelson, tax collector
Everett Rice, sheriff
Jim Smith, property appraiser
Michael Bonfield, city manager, St. Pete Beach
Tom Brobeil, city manager, Indian Rocks Beach
Steve Cottrell, town manager, Belleair
Charles Coward, city manager, Treasure Island
Frank Edmunds, city manager, Seminole
Tish Elston, deputy mayor, St. Petersburg
Bruce Haddock, city manager, Oldsmar
Bill Horne, city manager, Clearwater
Mo Freaney, assistant city manager, Dunedin
Robert Lee, city manager, Gulfport
Wayne Logan Jr., city manager, Safety Harbor
Jim Madden, city manager, Madeira Beach
Jerry Mudd, city manager, Pinellas Park
Ellen Posivach, city manager, Tarpon Springs
Stephen Spratt, Pinellas County administrator
Steve Stanton, city manager, Largo
Mike Brophy, commission member, Lealman Special Fire Control District, or Linda Campbell, president Lealman Special Fire District commission
Dr. Ken Peluso, chair, Palm Harbor Community Services District/Palm Harbor Fire District
Nadine Nickeson, chairwoman, Pinellas Planning Council
Ronnie Duncan, chairman, Southwest Florida Water Management District
Dick Eckenrod, executive director, Tampa Bay Estuary Program
Kenneth Hartmann, secretary, District 7, Florida Department of Transportation
David Healey, executive director, Pinellas Planning Council
Manny L. Pumariega, executive director, Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council
Brian Smith, executive director, Metropolitan Planning Organization
Mike Siebel, director of planning, Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority
Lee Benjamin, chairman, Pinellas County School Board
John Day, retired Pinellas County teacher
Gay Gentry, teacher, Largo Middle School
Dr. H. William Heller, dean and vice president, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg branch
Carl Kuttler Jr., president, St. Petersburg College
Lorraine Pelosi, owner of Wellington schools in Clearwater and Lealman
Dr. John Stewart, deputy superintendent, Pinellas County School Board
Service professions
Tim or Rick Bouchard, Roger Bouchard Insurance
Terry Brett, Brett Funeral Homes
Ben Ellis Sr., president/CEO, Ellis & Ellis Associates
Jerry Figurski, attorney
Sally Harris Foote, attorney
Phil Graham, president, Phil Graham & Co.
Edward C. Hoffman Jr., architect
Nancy Kaylor, public relations
Jim Koelsch, real estate appraiser
Don Mastry, attorney
Thomas Ramsberger, attorney
John Richardson, attorney
Art Shand, Aude, Shand & Williams, Inc., AIA
Greg Showers, partner, Kwall, Showers & Coleman
John Toppe, Harvard, Jolly, Clees and Toppe Architects
Robert Ulrich, attorney and former mayor of St. Petersburg
Alternate: Elise Winters, attorney
Russ Bond, general manager, Renaissance Vinoy Resort
Timothy Bogott, president and CEO, Tradewinds Beach Resort & Conference Centers
Ken Burke, DeLoach and Hofstra, Gulf Beaches Chamber board of directors
Russ Kimball, executive vice president, Sheraton Sand Key
Joseph Jorgensen, president, Travel Resort Services
Darryl Seaton, Sea Wake Resorts
Lee Arnold Jr., chairman of the board & CEO, Colliers Arnold
Phyllis Boksen, investment manager
Alan Bomstein, president, Creative Contractors, Inc.
Bobby Byrd, president, BBRE-Eshenbaugh Commercial Services Inc.
David Fischer, retired, public finance industry, former St. Petersburg mayor
Terry England, England Brothers Construction Co.
Mark Klein, Klein & Heuchan, Inc.
Darryl LeClair or Mark Stroud, Echelon Real Estate
Judy Mitchell, president, Peter Brown Construction
Grady Pridgen, Grady Pridgen Development
David Stone, retired banker
Thomas Tafelski, president, Thomas Industries
Michael Van Butsel, Beers Construction
Paul Wikle, president, Coldwell Banker Wikle Properties
Connie Davis, executive director, Greater Palm Harbor Chamber of Commerce
Bill DeLong, president, Pinellas Park/Mid-County Chamber of Commerce
David Edgars, president, Dunedin Chamber of Commerce
Rodney Fischer, executive director, Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board
Kevin Gartland, president, Oldsmar Chamber of Commerce
Jimmy Johnson, executive director, Greater Seminole Area Chamber of Commerce
Mike Meidel, president, Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce
Paul Skipper, president, Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board
Debbie Stambaugh, executive director, Gulf Beaches Chamber of Commerce
Lorian S. Williams, executive director, St. Petersburg Area Black Chamber of Commerce
Fred Winters, president, NCF&O/SEIU Local No. 1220
Sue Englander, CEO, EEI/Mod Tech
Dave Gildersleeve, vice president, Wade Trim
Bob Kersteen, GTE Wireless
Michael Lewis, vice president, Coastal Region, Florida Power Corp.
Jerry Maxwell, executive director, Tampa Bay Water
Leroy Sullivan, TECO/People's Gas
Philip Beauchamp, president and CEO, Morton Plant Mease Health Care
Sue Brody, president/CEO, Bayfront Medical Center
Tom Herron, adminstrator, Largo Medical Care
Janice Hill, RN, MPH, PCSO, health services administrator/active in civic organizations
Dr. Gloria Hope
Jack Olsen, CEO, health care provider
Frank Murphy, CEO, BayCare Health System (alternate: Denton Crockett, vice president)
Tracy Payne, Johnnie Ruth Clark Health Centers
Larry Williams, Diagnostic Services
Janice Case, retired Florida Power vice president
Housh Ghouvaee, Northside Engineering
Paul Kaslander, Dial Directories Inc.
Lynda Keever, publisher, Florida Trend
Michael Preston, owner/CEO, Frenchy's Restaurants
C.W. "Sandy" Sanders, BFI consultant
Roger Sellew, semiretired business executive
Howard Smith, retired business owner
Bernie Young, Creative Team Building (small business owner)
Advisory board members
James Gillespie, chairman, Pinellas County Board of Adjustment
Tom Olson, Belleair Finance Advisory Board
Barbara Smith, Finance Advisory Board, Largo
Anne Venables, chairwoman, Indian Rocks Beach Planning and Zoning Board
Mary Wyatt Allen, numerous civic and cultural boards
Darryl Rouson, president, NAACP-St. Petersburg Branch
Jim Simmons, president, Urban League of Pinellas County
Alternates: John Christman, unincorporated area activist, and Geraldine Raja, Tierra Verde resident
Askia Muhammad Aquil, executive director, St. Petersburg Neighborhood Housing Services
Ray "Biff" Baker, vice chairman, Feathersouth Community Services District
Tasker Beal, chair, Housing Finance Authority/Constellation Technologies Corp.
Nancy Biesinger, Tierra Verde Community Association
Brent Fischer, St. Petersburg Council of Neighborhood Associations
Don Hazleton, Federation of Manufactured Homeowners of Florida Inc.
Keith Kurber, Dunedin neighborhood activist
Ray Neri, president, Lealman Community Association
Al Redman, unincorporated Seminole area; alternate: Karl Maier
Susie Rodenbeck, Dunedin neighborhood activist
Greg Schwartz, Tampa Bay Community Development Corp.
Duke Tieman, South Greenwood Progressive Association
Angel Tua, deputy executive director, Pinellas County Housing Authority
Lisa Valensia, president, East Lake Oaks Homeowners Association
Alternates: John Doran, Clearwater Beach Association; Nick Fritsch, Sand Key Civic Association; Jean Scott or Linda Clark, Indian Rocks Beach Homeowners Association/Civic Association; John Wiser, Countryside activist
Mark Abdo, executive director, the Long Center
Lynne Brown, artist/historian
G. Scott Goyer, president/CEO, Suncoast Family YMCAs Inc.
Judith Powers-Jones, executive director, Pinellas County Arts Council
Kathy Oathout, Florida International Museum
Irene Rausch, executive director, Palm Harbor Senior Activity Center
Jim Sheets, recreation director, Seminole
Alternates: Robert Freedman, president/CEO, PACT Inc.; Steve Gottscho, District Little League; Mary Anna Murphy
Mohammad Abdur Rahim, community activist
Rabbi Arthur Baseman, Temple B'nai Israel
The Rev. Rusty Belcher, First United Methodist Church
The Rev. Chico Dials, New Life
Barbara Greene, Everybody's Tabernacle
The Rev. Louis Murphy, Mount Zion Baptist
The Rev. Harold Paxton, former Kenneth City mayor
1 representative from Catholic Church
Mike Kouskoutis, representative of the Greek Orthodox Church
Alternates: the Rev. Bill Anderson, retired minister, Calvary Baptist Church; the Rev. Scott Boggs, Northside Baptist
Sue Brandon, cochair, TBEP Community Advisory Committee
Peter Clark, Tampa Bay Watch
Rick DelGreco, environmentalist/local resident
Roy Harrell, Esq., Holland & Knight
Alternates: Sandy Colbert, co-chair, TBEP Community Advisory Committee; Connie Kone, Friends of Weedon Island; George Henderson, Florida Marine Research Institute; David Martin, president, Indian Rocks Beach Action 2000 Inc.
Michael Bernstein, president/CEO, Gulf Coast Jewish Family and Mental Health Services
Ron Dickman, Religious Community Service, Inc.
Beth Eschenfelder, Mustard Seed (substance abuse)
Maria Escobales, MCI Consulting, Area Agency on Aging
Dr. Ann Kelley, Directions for Mental Health Inc.
Henry Kwoh
Jay Stagg, spokesman for the disabled
Tom Wedekind, Pinellas Emergency Mental Health Services
Alternates: B.J. Sally, All Nations
Lounell Britt, executive director, James B. Sanderlin Center
Carl Lavender, Boys and Girls Club
James E. Mills, executive director, Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County
Peggy Sanchez Mills, CEO, YWCA-St. Petersburg
Bud Bradley, MPO/Bike Committee
Sue Brooks, Neighborhood Watch
Edward Quinones, UNO Federation
Chrsytal Holmes, Pedestrian Committee/MPO
Alternate: Col. Charles O. Dedman, Neighborhood Watch
-- Source: American Assembly, Florida Institute of Government at Florida Atlantic University