It's
not about just the money...
it's the old-boys/old-gals bureaucracy,
circling the wagons.
See
below for just a few great places to start looking... and questioning. Special welcome to the CVB
employees who keep visiting SiliconBeachUSA, especially those who
stuff the "YES" voting button to the right. But, hey guys,
you can stop now... it's over with.
Convention
and Visitors Bureau (CVB) Issues and News
How
to dodge (no pun intended) dealing with the public
on the Beach Nourishment raid?First,
bury it as item #35 in a Consent Agenda, but then
pull it and put it on a late agenda item allowing
discussion... after a load of political pressure
to do so. We're gratified, but disappointed it took
applying pressure. And, we appreciate the way it
was presented with options to avoid raiding the
beach fund. See item 23
below.
Sand
Dollars
The St. Petersburg/Clearwater Area Convention and
Visitors Bureau wants to borrow $2.5-million from
a beach restoration fund -- Pinellas County beach
business leaders be damned.
23
Well,
they are starting to get it. At
about 9:30pm, August 20 Commission Meeting,
voting 4 to 2 for Administrator Spratt's lateral
arabesque to take money from the "pooled
money" -- as do all other Pinellas County
departments when THEY need money -- instead
of Beach Nourishment funds. So,
what's the CVB... chopped liver? Let them get
it that way and pay it back, too, just like
the other departments.
The
vote: Harris, Morroni, Seel and Todd> FOR.
Welch and Latvala against.
Read
these articles about the failed American Assembly attempt
to coerce agreement by Pinellas cities to buy into consolidated
County control of services and the money.
