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St. Pete Beach freezes city jobs, tightens purse strings
By AMY WIMMER
© St. Petersburg Times, ST. PETE BEACH -- Taking their cue from beach hotels, restaurants and retail stores that are unsure what to expect from this year's tourist season, city commissioners on Tuesday told city department heads to postpone hiring new employees until at least Jan. 1. Besides freezing the new positions authorized in the recently approved 2001-2002 budget, commissioners also urged staffers to delay any expenditures "not absolutely necessary" and consider cutting the budgets in their departments by 5 to 15 percent. Commissioner Pete Blank, who proposed those restrictions, had also hoped to freeze employee salaries as of Sept. 30, except to allow for a 3 percent annual cost-of-living increase. The rest of the commission turned down that idea, saying it would conflict with some of its contracts with employee unions. "I hope I'm wrong on every one of these things," Blank said. "But if I'm not, I'd rather be proactive." The commission's approach matches that of the Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce, which is soliciting donations to begin promoting Pinellas beaches as a driving destination, in light of consumer fears of flying. The city will keep working to fill the city manager job. St. Pete Beach has been under the direction of Acting City Manager Chris Brimo since July, when Carl Schwing resigned amid concerns about his relationship with department heads. Commissioners hope to interview candidates for that job in November and, according to literature distributed to job candidates, pay in the high $80,000s. The city will also convene its Finance and Budget Committee in early December to meet with the new city manager, Finance Director Steve Gallaher and other department heads to determine whether more budget balancing is needed. Blank said he expected sales tax revenue, which is distributed to several levels of government, including the city, to decrease next year. He also noted that some hotel and restaurant owners in St. Pete Beach plan to appeal to Property Appraiser Jim Smith for tax relief. Beach property values have increased exponentially in recent years, and this year business people aren't confident in their ability to pay the taxes. "We need to be cognizant of the fact that our budget might be out of whack with our revenues," Blank said.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
