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Here’s some of what people said at the Mar. 7 Gulfport City Council meeting.
About Local Transit
“A couple of weeks ago I took the SunRunner to St. Pete Beach. Then I took a Freebie here, I took a Freebie there, and it was delightful. It is kind of amazing. I know we had a presentation here from Freebie. I hope you are taking it very, very seriously. Not only do we need it because people don’t want to park at Hoyt Field or wherever – they don’t even want to park at the library to go downtown – if we had something like that, better than the Gecko, I think it would be used nonstop.
“What they did in St. Pete Beach was extend it, and they cut their ties with the PSTA. I know none of the details, but what he [SPB mayor] told me was as they made that transition, they saved money. People love it. … In order to make life affordable for working people, transit is an extremely important part of the whole picture.” –Caron Schwartz
About the State Legislature and Home Rule
“I’m concerned we are not doing enough to stop this overreach. I would encourage you as leaders of Gulfport to speak out in The Gabber, your social media, and the City web page. Educate all Gulfportians with what’s going on with home rule and the impact it has on our city and all our lives. The keys to city hall, and the decisions affecting Gulfport, belong right here. Not in Tallahassee.” –David McCormick
About Upcoming Council Meetings
“You may have some scheduling issues in April. Two of your colleagues are going to attend the Florida Legislative Days in Tallahassee on April 4. We would want to schedule the RV ordinance and also the discussion and possible action on the BCYC lease. You’ll have some Board of Adjustment appointments. Rules and procedures would normally be scheduled for that April 4 meeting.
“I’m going to ask you to schedule those for April 18, and if it would even be necessary to have that April 4 meeting. That’s up to council. I just wanted to let you know we have those items pending, and there are issues you wouldn’t want to address without a full council.” – City Manager Jim O’Reilly
“If there’s nothing from a time standpoint that is critical, I’ve got no problem canceling the April 4 meeting.” – Mayor Sam Henderson, just before council reached consensus to cancel that meeting
