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By SHARON KENNEDY WYNNE
© St. Petersburg Times, published May 20, 2001
Letter may snag search for manager
CRYSTAL RIVER -- Imagine trying to recruit a new employee only to have someone sending poison pen letters to your job candidates.
That's what Crystal River is facing as it copes with the political hot potato of replacing City Manager David Sallee, who many feel should keep the job.
Four of the seven city manager finalists have dropped out, and at least one of those finalists said he pulled away after learning of the job's high turnover. There have been seven managers since 1990.
In what can be construed as either a nice gesture or the work of a saboteur, Chris Lloyd, one of Sallee's most vocal supporters, mailed a letter to several candidates that draws attention to the turnover.
Lloyd says he simply wanted candidates to be "aware of the environment and prepared to work within that environment." Sallee has said he knew little about the turnover before accepting the position in 1999.
One letter recipient, Steven Thomas, a city finance director in South Carolina, said it was unusual and caused him to raise an eyebrow, but he's still interested. "Doing a good job doesn't necessarily guarantee you longevity," Thomas said. "It's the nature of the game, not to say what happens is always fair."
CRYSTAL RIVER -- The number of dead baby manatees found in North Suncoast waters continues to climb, prompting growing concern from federal wildlife officials and continuing efforts to explain the deaths.
There have been a dozen dead manatees in Citrus and Levy counties since Jan. 1 classified as "perinatal," which means stillborn or newborn animals. From all causes last year there were six deaths in Citrus and four in Levy.
Officials are looking into possible contamination from herbicides and from an old oil-storage site in Inglis. But Jim Valade of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said the likely explanation may be as simple as the weather.
"There are certainly a number of theories out there . . . but the one with the most credibility in my mind is that we had a pretty hard winter," Valade said. "We had an extended cold period, and you would expect that the cold weather would put stress on the pregnant females."
TARPON SPRINGS -- The girls are still showering in front of a Web camera, even though Tarpon Springs last week started slapping down $800 a day in fines to try to stop a voyeuristic Web site from operating out of a Tarpon Springs home.
In April, Tarpon Springs' Code Enforcement Board told ucanwatch.com to shut down its local operation by May 15 or face the daily fines.
An attorney for the owner argued that the company is not located in the Tarpon Springs house but in cyberspace. He also said that the women featured on the site live in the house rent-free and are not paid for appearing nude or engaging in sexual acts.
The city attorney says he will ask the City Commission to seek an injunction.
"We're not asking that they shut down their business," said Walter Fufidio, the city's director of planning and zoning, "just that they relocate to a more appropriate place."
SAFETY HARBOR -- In an effort to conserve water, Safety Harbor officials want to tap into a mineral spring that runs beneath a portion of the city and use it to fill a fountain in the city's planned Marina Park.
"I actually thought it was closer to the spa, but then I found out it was right across the street from the fountain," Mayor Pam Corbino said. "I'm just delighted that we found a way to put water in our fountain without taking potable water from our citizens and without it costing anything."
To fill the Marina Park fountain with the spring water could take as long as two days and 8,700 gallons, which is roughly two-thirds the amount of water in an in-ground home swimming pool.
And although the fountain will be equipped with a hydraulic pump designed to spout water, whether it will be turned on still depends on when the drought is over.
"If we did turn it on, we would put signs up to make it clear that it was spring water being used," said City Manager Steve Wylie. "But we likely won't turn it on until it rains again."
TAMPA -- It's official. Bullies are banned from Hillsborough schools.
With little discussion, the School Board agreed to a five-page policy that cracks down on all types of bullying, from poking to terrorizing. The policy takes effect this fall.
Hillsborough is one of the first school systems in the Tampa Bay area to institute a specific prohibition on bullying. Others, such as Pinellas and Pasco, address bullying as part of overall policies on harassment.
But Hillsborough is not the first to note the link between bullying and school violence such as in the 1999 shooting at Colorado's Columbine High School where the two gunmen were taunted by classmates. Schools nationwide have given the issue priority as research has shown victims of bullying have turned to serious acts of violence for revenge.
Some, however, have criticized the anti-bullying movement and its policies as being too broad. They say it can stifle normal childhood behavior and possibly infringe on students' free speech rights.
INVERNESS -- In a dramatic about-face, the Brown Schools of Florida announced last week that it no longer will accept adolescents accused of felony-level crimes who cannot proceed any further in the juvenile court system.
Those residents often caused the most trouble at Brown's facility in Lecanto. They also have been the primary focus of Brown critics outside government.
Last year, Brown transformed the old Heritage Hospital building into a residential treatment facility for emotionally disturbed adolescents.
In the past year, residents have caused more than 600 false fire alarms and caused the Citrus County Sheriff's Office to visit nearly 200 times in less than a year. There have been four escapes, two of which involved subsequent law violations by the escapees.
Black Diamond, an upscale development nearby, and some of its residents had brought legal action on several fronts, saying Brown essentially was running a detention facility and questioning the county zoning decision that allowed the company to set up shop.
The city of St. Petersburg's legal staff will meet Monday with the attorney for the African People's Education and Defense Fund. The group wants to name a grant-financed gym the "Uhuru Black Gym of Our Own" -- a name prohibited by the grant contract between the group and the city.
The last meeting of the state's Board of Regents will be held in Tampa Thursday. The board, which oversees the state's university system, was dissolved by the Legislature a year ago to make way for locally controlled boards. On the agenda: moving the University of South Florida football team up to Division I-A, a tougher division with bigger-named schools.
Expect to see a lot of pickup trucks outside Pinellas Park City Hall on Tuesday when the City Council discusses proposed changes to the truck, carport and garbage container ordinances during a 7:30 p.m. workshop. The council may change three ordinances: whether commercial vehicles can park in residential areas, the placement of carports in side-yard setbacks, and the masking of commercial garbage containers.
- Compiled by Times staff writer Sharon Kennedy Wynne