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City, town elections are real voice of the people

By HOWARD TROXLER
Published March 1, 2005

The heck with Washington. Forget about Tallahassee, too. The real action around here for the next few weeks will be municipal elections.

The smaller the burg, the better the stuff. Nothing like it! See, this guy used to be married to that guy's wife. This other guy is in tight with the mayor's brother. That woman thinks she runs this town.

Fourteen of the 24 towns or cities in Pinellas County are at bat, Largo today and the rest next Tuesday. Plant City in Hillsborough votes on April 5, and on April 12 come New Port Richey, Zephyrhills and Port Richey in Pasco County.

There's a definite theme at work - several of these elections involve a tug-of-war for power between the citizens and their City Hall.

Nowhere are the citizens more ambitious than in Treasure Island , that second-southernmost beach burg along Pinellas' barrier islands. Angry at past pro-development decisions, the citizens are definitely trying to yank the leash.

The citizens will vote on requiring fewer petition signatures to get an idea on the ballot, and more time for turning in petitions. They want to block the City Commission from passing anything to interfere with a pending petition.

They might declare that anything passed by the voters can be amended only in a future election. They want to make it harder to abolish police or fire services.

Belleair , on the coast just south of Clearwater, has only 3,231 registered voters, but it's a hotbed too. Three challengers have banded together on the theme that the city hasn't kept citizens in the know.

As the city didn't even have a Web site, the outsiders started their own (www.townofbelleair.com) forcing the city to reply (belleair.govoffice.com). Big issue: Whether the incumbents are right to pursue kicking out Progress Energy Co. and taking over.

Oldsmar up at the top of Tampa Bay has been wooing and sweet-talking the skeptical residents of an area called West Oldsmar, with 103 acres and 387 voters, who will vote next Tuesday on being annexed. (Maybe they're holding out till St. Petersburg expands that way.)

Safety Harbor has a ballot measure sure to give a chill to hooky-playing office-holders everywhere: automatic forfeit of office for two consecutive unexcused absences, or four within 12 months. Try that at the Tampa Sports Authority! Also: fewer signatures to get ideas on the ballot.

In other cities and towns, City Hall is trying to wheedle a little more leeway.

Gulfport hopes to be able to approve certain projects of up to $500,000 without an election, up from the current $150,000. A hundred and fifty grand ain't what it used to be.

Redington Beach , another barrier island town, proposes raising the salary of the mayor to $500 a month and commission members to $300 a month (up from $100 and $50). There's also a proposed renaming of Town Park, at 164th Avenue and Gulf Boulevard, to "The Ronald W. Reagan Memorial Park."

Seminole is asking voters to increase the terms of city officers from two years to three years. Tarpon Springs , now known as Wal-Mart-sur-Anclote , has a ballot item wickedly titled "Limitation of Powers" that actually increases city powers. Another item would get basically rid of the city's internal auditor - who needs auditors?

Also in the longer-leash department, New Port Richey will seek to increase city terms from two to three years.

Elsewhere around the horn: Largo today has two commission seats on the ballot. This has been one of the city's more colorful campaigns, with ghosts of an earlier bruising battle over human rights and, just for funsies, a criminal complaint over campaign contributions.

In Madeira Beach , two of the four candidates are finally off the hook for not writing a required letter of acceptance after their nomination. By the way, the former city manager is running there.

Who else? Belleair Beach , Indian Shores , South Pasadena and St. Pete Beach . South Pasadena's politics are like one big condo association (do NOT call me to gripe, I love you guys). As for St. Pete Beach: You get a whole column soon. You deserve it.

[Last modified March 1, 2005, 01:10:14]