TREASURE ISLAND — Pinellas County would shut down libraries, close parks and cut into nearly every corner of its budget before touching public safety if voters approve a property tax amendment in November, County Commissioner Chris Latvala told beach community leaders Aug. 26.
“Any public safety cuts would be absolutely last,” Latvala said. “And if we have to cut parks, if we have to shut down libraries, if we have to do all that other stuff first, so be it. Public safety is first and foremost.”
Latvala also said the commission is considering charging $3.50 an hour at county beach parking lots, replacing the current $6 daily rate.
The commissioner delivered the legislative update at the monthly meeting of the Barrier Islands Governmental Council, known as BIG-C, at Treasure Island City Hall. The organization is made up of leaders from more than a dozen Gulf Coast communities stretching from Clearwater to St. Pete Beach.
Amendment 3, the property tax measure the state Legislature placed on the Nov. 3 ballot, needs 60% approval to pass.
“The county budget is still a work in progress,” Latvala said, noting the proposed fiscal year 2027 budget stands at $5.137 billion across all funds. “So what I tell you today may get changed over the next few weeks as we continue to refine it and find reductions.”
The proposal “reduces the (county) workforce by 43.8 positions, with an emphasis on reassignments as vacancies occur,” he said.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office “takes up a large portion” of the budget, Latvala said, with more than $500 million set aside for the agency.
“The sheriff’s original request was expected to grow by $26.208 million,” he said. “Just for perspective, the countywide general fund property taxes are expected to grow by $26.526 million, which is nearly the same amount.”
The fiscal 2027 budget is balanced and funds storm recovery and public safety, Latvala said. But if the amendment passes, the county is “facing many difficult decisions ahead, and I know you all are, as well.”
“I expect there will be more cutting ahead,” he said.
While the amendment spells out programs and services that would be protected, Latvala cautioned that “every part of the budget will be impacted, including public safety, but only as a last resort.”
“When we look at the potential cuts after Amendment 3, if it should pass, we would instruct the County Commission to cut the sheriff’s budget last,” he said.
The warnings, along with the parking proposal, drew concern from local leaders.
“Looking at losing 43 employees for the county, I’m very concerned about that,” Indian Rocks Beach Mayor Lan Vaughan said. Vaughan said IRB leaders “got beat up pretty bad” for switching to paid parking, though the move “has created a positive environment ... and helped bring a different clientele to the (city).”
Asked whether he saw more cuts coming, Latvala did not hedge.
“Oh, absolutely. And it will be severe,” he said. “We will be talking about parks being eliminated. Or instead of being open on weekends, maybe they’ll be open two days a week. Every part of the budget will be impacted.”
Latvala said he expects the amendment to clear 50% support but is unsure it will reach 60%. “It depends,” he said.
Sheriffs, he said, could decide the outcome.
“The average voter couldn’t care less what a county commissioner says,” Latvala said. “But what sways them is what their sheriff says. So if a sheriff says, ‘Hey, our budget will be impacted if this passes,’ that sways voters.”
Whatever happens in November, Latvala said, property tax relief is coming in some form, and local leaders can only prepare for it. He said he will not campaign against the amendment and might vote for it himself.
“People can vote however they want,” he said. “But if it passes, counties are going to have some very difficult decisions to make, including Pinellas County.”
Grassroots storm recovery nonprofit still going strong
Nearly two years after Hurricanes Helene and Milton, the storms’ effects are still being felt across Pinellas County.
Some residents have rebuilt or relocated. Others are still trying to recover what they lost and still looking for help, financial or otherwise.
Veronica and Ed Katz, Gulf beaches residents whose own property was damaged, decided to help neighbors who had fared worse.
“We had so many neighbors that we loved in that community, and we saw so many of them struggling and not knowing how they were going to move forward,” Veronica Katz said. “So that’s how we got started.”
The couple founded Barrier Island Strong, a nonprofit that began with a $1,000 investment to feed people in need and grew into a collaborative effort across the Gulf Coast communities.
“It was a very grassroots effort, neighbors coming together and helping as a community,” she said.
Today the organization is a one-stop shop for storm recovery, offering grant money, help navigating complicated state and federal websites and volunteer cleanups for neighbors still struggling.
“We’ve had 80 or more volunteers help at several cleanup events we’ve held,” Katz said. No one affiliated with Barrier Island Strong draws a paycheck, she said: “It’s all volunteers.”
The worst of the damage is behind them, Katz told the leaders gathered Aug. 26, but the couple plans to keep going as long as the need remains.
“As long as there’s a need for Barrier Island Strong’s support, we plan to provide it for our neighbors,” she said.
For more information, visit barrierislandstrong.com.