St. Petersburg gave its mayor-elect, Charlie Crist, a mandate.
City voters turned out 62% for the former governor and congressman, ousting Mayor Ken Welch.
Crist’s strategy of harping on the incumbent’s failures — including the impending loss of the Tampa Bay Rays and the missed opportunity of a Moffitt Cancer Center campus downtown — resonated with residents let down by Welch’s five years at City Hall.
But Crist still hasn’t given many specifics for his own vision and plans.
He promises that will change soon.
Crist told the Tampa Bay Times he plans on Wednesday or Thursday to roll out “a map forward” of what residents can expect.
That may include who will assist with his transition and what his mayorship could look like. That will have to include navigating the gargantuan task of finding a projected $35 million — about 15% of the property tax revenue budgeted for collection in 2027 — to cut from the city’s coffers after voters statewide approved property tax reform through Amendment 3.
“I’ll put it this way, change is in the air,” Crist said. “They elected a new mayor, and I’m going to respect that in a very decent, thoughtful way.”
Amendment 3 cuts loom for St. Pete
Crist said he is leaning on former mayors, all of whom endorsed him, to help figure out budget cuts. He said he’s also called City Council members and City Administrator Rob Gerdes to get their ideas.
“We’ve got that challenge in front of us,” Crist said. “I think we’ll be fine.”
Former Mayor Rick Baker presided over the first three budget cycles of the Great Recession. He said Crist will have to work with the city’s leadership to identify reductions, but that the decisions will ultimately fall to the new mayor.
Former Mayor Rick Kriseman, who preceded Welch, said cutting back on services and quality of life could affect the city’s ability to attract businesses and retain residents.
“Honestly, I don’t know where they’re going to be able to cut that much without people feeling it dramatically,” Kriseman said.
Crist ran on a campaign promise to roll back the property tax rate, which would return $14.8 million to residents and small businesses. But he’s not going to do that now that Amendment 3 has passed, he said.
Welch said in a texted statement that he anticipates “impactful cuts to services and staff” plus fee increases because of Amendment 3, but that Crist should use his campaign promise of cutting property taxes as a starting point to find budget trims.
Welch said the city’s finance team and council are “fully engaged for the work ahead,” even before Crist takes office Jan. 7. The city is already exploring a special assessment to cover expenses for the fire department.
Welch’s administration expressed some reservations over the council’s first fiscal decision since Amendment 3 passed. The council voted Thursday to spend up to $650,000 annually for a three-year contract with the Williams Park Partnership to pick up trash and litter, guide visitors around downtown and pressure-wash sidewalks.
While council members pointed out that new parking meters will fund the program, with money expected to be left over, vice chairperson Richie Floyd said that new revenue could be spent elsewhere. He cast the sole “no” vote for the program.
As Crist rolls out his plans, Floyd said he hopes the mayor-elect’s agenda overlaps with his priorities of affordability, safer streets for pedestrians and bicyclists, and better transit.
“When we have to make these cuts next year that voters demanded, I will not sit there and give in to business interests and cut things for working people,” said Floyd, who is poised to assume the role of chairperson next year. “I hope the mayor-elect would hear me out. You know how much funding he got from interests like that, so I will have to see.”
Council member Deborah Figgs-Sanders, who endorsed Welch, said she hopes Crist will provide an equitable quality of life, such as attainable housing, while managing the budget cuts. Council member Copley Gerdes, who also backed Welch, said police and fire need to be fully funded.
“And then we gotta go and make some hard decisions after that,” he said.
Crist inherits city’s unfinished business
Crist will have to shepherd another effort to redevelop the downtown marina, figure out a solution for the aging Municipal Services Center and restore a grocery center at Tangerine Plaza. Crist has said he plans to move on each of those projects with urgency.
Crist said it “looks like” he’ll move forward with a plan he inherited from Welch to speed up water and sewage projects paid for by a new property tax voters also approved last week.
Crist said he voted “no” on a city referendum to take out bonds for those projects, which voters approved by 74%.
“That’ll be helpful to an extent. We’ll take it from there and do what’s right and smart,” Crist said. “We’ll protect taxpayers’ money and spend it more wisely.”
And of course, Crist is inheriting the city’s largest unresolved matter: the future of Tropicana Field. The Tampa Bay Rays contract there expires after the 2028 season.
Crist has promised to convene a “blue ribbon” panel to review all proposals submitted to redevelop the 86-acre site and to look into Welch’s selection process. Details on that, he said, may come out next week or the week after.
Welch this summer picked Blake Investment Partners for the job, which offered the highest cash price for the land. The city also entered into an agreement with the Urban Land Institute, which will hold a panel in December to study the site.
“We look forward to working with the new administration,” Thompson Whitney Blake, CEO of Blake Investment Partners, said in an emailed statement. “We are committed to the city and its residents and are dedicated to creating jobs here, building new retail and housing, and delivering parks and open spaces.”
Crist wants to keep the Rays in St. Petersburg, despite a deal inked in Hillsborough County and Tampa to build a stadium. He said he spoke with the team’s CEO, Ken Babby, about six weeks ago.
“I’m sure as hell going to try to keep them here,” Crist said. “We built the stadium for them, and we pretty much built the stadium again for them. If we don’t try to take a shot, that’ll be stupid.”
