St. Petersburg, Florida
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Nicknamed "The Sunshine City" or "St. Pete," St. Petersburg was founded in 1888 by Peter Demens, a Russian immigrant; the city was formally incorporated in 1892. [2] [3]
[edit] Website evaluation
This website was reviewed on April 10, 2012.
[edit] The good
- City council members are listed with a communal email address and individual email addresses for their aides.[4]
- A staff email directory is posted.[5]
- Meeting schedules,[6] agendas,[7] and searchable minutes are posted.[8]
- Audits are posted.[9]
- Budgets are posted.[10]
- Building permits and zoning information are posted.[11]
- Bid opportunities[12] and bid results are posted.[13] City contracts are also available.[14]
[edit] The bad
- Individual email addresses are not available for city council members.
- No information is available on Taxpayer-funded lobbying.
- Tax information is not posted.
- No information is available on how to make public records requests.
[edit] Lobbying
- Main articles: Florida taxpayer-funded lobbying and Florida League of Cities.
St. Petersburg pays membership dues[15] to the Florida League of Cities, a taxpayer-funded lobbying association.
St. Petersburg's Internal Services Manager, Dave Metz, is recommending that the full-time position of city lobbyist be removed as part of ongoing efforts to close the $12 million budget deficit. The shortage of funds has already limited current city lobbyist Todd Yost's ability to travel to the state capital of Tallahassee. Metz suggests that the city instead contract with a private firm, which Metz estimates would cost between $25,000 and $30,000.[16]
[edit] Elected Officials
St. Petersburg's government follows the strong mayor model, which utilizes both a mayor and a city council. The mayor is the executive who carries out the council's ordinances and runs daily operations whereas the council is the legislative body that shapes budgets and policies.[17]
The current mayor is Bill Foster, a Republican, who was elected in November 2009.[18] Foster's annual salary is $158,355 as of Aug. 2010[19]. City Council members earn approximately $50,000 per year.[20]
Current members of City Council, as of June 2011:[21]
| Member | Title | District |
|---|---|---|
| Herbert E. Polson | Member | District 1 |
| Jim Kennedy | Chair | District 2 |
| Bill Dudley | Member | District 3 |
| Leslie Curran | Member | District 4 |
| Steve Kornell | Member | District 5 |
| Karl Nurse | Vice Chair | District 6 |
| Wengay Newton | Member | District 7 |
| Jeff Danner | Member | District 8 |
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau
- ↑ St. Petersburg At a Glance
- ↑ St. Petersburg on Wikipedia
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Council," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Emails," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Meetings," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Agendas," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Online Docs Search," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Finance," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Budget," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Land Development," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Bid Solicitations," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "Bid Results," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ St. Petersburg "City Contracts," Accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ Membership Directory
- ↑ no full-time lobbyist
- ↑ form of government
- ↑ Bill Foster elected mayor
- ↑ mayor's salary
- ↑ city council's salaries
- ↑ elected officials
