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About the recent Planning & Zoning Board meeting
“What concerned me about this meeting was there’s no security. This room was packed with people. The level of anger was palpable and people were packed in like sardines. … The recriminations and vilifications of the people who wanted to keep this land public. I thought it was very inappropriate. … I didn’t feel this board was trained. I recommend training for the chair of the board about decorum – using the gavel when people stray off into personal stuff and family feuds and neighborhood feuds and all that, bang the gavel and bring them in check. Then, if necessary, having a police officer to escort them out. I strongly recommend that the City Council move the site of the next meeting to the Hickman [theater] because there’s a lot of interest. It’s going to be super-packed.” –Walter Barker, about a meeting that addressed three property owners’ request to vacate right-of-way adjacent to their homes
About Ian and insurance companies
“We’re starting to see some of the companies folding under who can’t pay out their claims. This is one of those things we have no say in but the state has got to address. Some of these insurance companies are too small, they don’t have any reserves. And they have to write checks. The companies that don’t have enough to pay their claims just go bankrupt.” –Councilman Paul Ray (Ward III)
About Gulfport code enforcement
“Only about 3% of your cases generated are complaint-driven. The rest are generated by staff. There is a misperception that we are complaint-driven. A minimal amount of cases are complaint-driven. We actually go out and patrol the city. It’s staff-initiated, and we can give you the data to support that.” – City Manager Jim O’Reilly
About the Gulfport Gecko, G. Gordon McFly
“The Gecko light bulb is not there because Ian took it. We are waiting for a replacement.” – Brown
About electric vehicles
“By 2040 we’ll be about 30% electric vehicles, and Florida is second in the nation for EV adaption, but we’re behind in charging stations for those and the state really needs a master plan and EV road map so people know they can take a little trip in their car and not get stuck.” – Councilwoman April Thanos (Ward I), referring to information she received at a Tampa Bay Regional Council meeting
“If you’re building a house, it’s cheaper to put in at least part of the structure for a charging station while you’re building it than to retrofit a house with it.” –Thanos on building EV-ready housing
“One of the things they’re finding is that there’s no way to really map [charging stations]. The problem is that you find a charging station and 65% of the time they’re working. If you plan out your trip and you’re out of power, you can pull up to one that’s broken. A lot of them are not on the highways.” –Ray
“My daughter had a Tesla but doesn’t have one anymore. The map in there shows you where every Tesla charger is and if you can make it. I don’t think they have other chargers.” –Vice Mayor Christine Brown (Ward II)
“That app also doesn’t tell you if they’re out of service. You pull up and it has a bag over the top.” –Ray
“They have a whole slew of Tesla chargers at a Huddle House on 19 in Perry, of all places.” –Brown
